The Human We Met
by Demonife
Summary: Post LS.Bloodlines may or may not have happened.Queen Tatiana isn't e sent Lissa on a trail and that's when things go wrong. Meet Neelia,a young human who has read all about the famous Rose Hathaway.What will happen when they meet each other and face the danger surrounding all of them? VA spoilers (duh)
1. Chapter 1

[RPOV]

Well, this is what happened.

After all these "adventures" you may call it, life must be _normal_ from now on, right? Hell, no! Turns out that the "late" queen isn't dead. She faked it. Queen Tatiana fooled all of us, even Ambrose. She showed up a week after Lissa's coronation. Then chaos. After a non-stop-five-hour-council-meeting (or shouting, as I recall) Tatiana Ivashkov remains queen, while Lissa became her un-doubtful heir.

 _Damn_.

After all these years of hating "Queen" Tatiana, I've finally started to respect her a little. Then this happened. I'm not so sure what to think of her anymore.

She's stopped the age law immediately (thank goodness), let Lissa decide her own college major, and even tried to convince Adrian not to hate me so much (by saying how unworthy I am, that is)( and it didn't work quite well), and made Dimitri an official guardian back on field. How weird that the queen of moroi can make me perfectly hate-but-not-hate-with-a-little-of-respect her at the same time?

But that's not even the "best" part. Turns out that every "un-doubtful heir" of the throne should go through another series of trails, by taking another moroi (Christian, indeed) and two guardians (guess who? Dimitri and I) into an arena (just like the hunger games, just like a sick joke) and works things out like a team. And that's when things go wrong, very wrong. Strigoi.

(Present time)

Long story short: we were kidnapped from the arena. We somehow kept all of our belongings, they tied us up then dragged us in a basement (cliche). Human body-parts everywhere. Somehow I'm the only one to remain conscious (hopefully, nothing to do with my height), but I played 'dead'. They shut the door. Then something started to move in the darkness. It covered my mouth and whispered in my ear, "Don't move, I'll cut the ropes. Name's Neelia."


	2. Chapter 2

[Neelia's POV]

 _*Flashback_

 _I'm always excited to go abroad, especially when I can speak the language, especially no visa required. Especially going with friends. But not when I got on a teens-hour flight just to climb the mountains. Seriously, there's enough mountains back home. "Be careful," I told myself from time to time," I will not let my guard down in the wilderness. Turns out that I was so 'dam' right (I try not to swear). Five minutes. That's all it costs. Five minutes 'till sunrise. I've got three hours to sleep before waking my friends, we're quite near to the civilization. I made my first and final, deadly mistake. I put out the fire. My blood-shot eyes welcomed the darkness, but there's an acceleration in my heart-beat. Fear. I've always trusted my instincts. A large BANG ended on my head before I could even scream, not that it would wake anyone, anyway._

 _End of flashback*_

Three days. Three days has pasted. 72 hours. They brought new victims for every eight hours. They let them sit for two hours (to gain consciousness, I suppose),then threw in a body from the last group of victims, then feed on whoever screams. Another six hours of absolute darkness drowned with desperation. I was quiet, I still am. They must have lost count of the people they brought in, thought they never seem to care. I stayed at a corner, there's a leak on the pipe. That's how I survived. I glanced at my watch, only to wish I hadn't. Eight hours has passed, again. Four figures are thrown in haste. One is still conscious. That's new. Maybe I still have a chance after all. The only moving figure is a very beautiful girl, it is obvious even in the dimmest lighting. She isn't screaming, that's new, too. She somehow reminded me of someone, someone who I have never seen but heard, or rather, read so much about...Rose Hathaway.

I grabbed my pocket knife and crawled out of my corner (for the first time in three days) to her, this ought to be my one and only chance. I covered her mouth and spoke (for the first time in three days, too)," Don't move, I'll cut the ropes, name's Neelia."

 **A/N: My first fan-fict. All suggestions and correction reminders welcome. I don't mind if you leave a mean comment or not, but I'd prefer you to leave something useful. Feel free to ask questions and I'll try my best to answer them. Hope you enjoy!**


	3. Chapter 3

[RPOV]

I nodded. Hoping that source of voice understood that I won't scream. "It" let go of me just before I realized that "it" is a human! A girl to be exact. She worked on the ropes around my wrists with a dull pocket knife (I don't care though, as long as it does the job). After she freed my arms, she handed me the knife, pointed at my ankles, then pointed at my "companions". Then she crawled back to her corner. I wonder if she would harm me or my friends when I'm trying to free myself, (not that she could, after handing me the blade, anyway) but she freed my hands, she can't be that bad, right? I freed my friends in strategy-ish order: Dimitri, Christian, then Lissa (sorry Lis, but they just fight better). Then I realized that the girl, Neelia, is crawling back to me. I stared.

[NPOV]

If anyone can get me out of here, preferably back home, it has to be them. Not trusting my legs, I crawled back to 'my' corner, my backpack. I took my stainless steel cup under the leak. If they are true, if anything in the _Vampire Academy_ series is true... I try _not_ to get hopeful. While waiting for my cup to fill, I searched un my backpack, again. This time for another purpose. Plain cookies, dried fruits, chocolate, vitamin pills (we were hiking  & camping), and a few empty plastic bottles (surprised to find one unopened). I grabbed the food and the cup, placing and empty bottle under the leak, I crawled back to the figures.

[RPOV]

Getting a closer look at her, she can't be more than sixteen and is at least 3 inches (about 7 centimeters) shorter than me. She placed a cup in front of me along with some "camper's" food."Drink," she said in a hoarse voice, as if hasn't spoken in three days. I stared at the cup of water. Should I drink it? As if sensing my doubt, she grabbed the cup and took a sip, then she swallowed a pill. Then she handed me four pills."Not poisonous, these are vitamins. Water, drinkable. Been drinking for three days already." What's wrong with her and full sentences? Just then I see tears glittering by her cheeks, as if her throat burning."Eat," she said," They, back in two hours. Ten minutes passed, already. Taking a cookie, she glanced at her watch nervously. I took a sip of the water, the smell of metal reminded me of my stake. My stake! I grabbed my backup stake from my waist, now I _should_ be safer. Neelia stared at me curiously, although felling annoyed, I don't blame her since she has nothing else better to do, she then pointed at the pills, I took a sniff. Smelling the disgusting scent of B-complex, I decided to trust her. I took a pill, she smiled."Is it safe to talk?" I whispered. Neelia nodded carefully," Before the two-hour deadline." she added. After almost hearing a full sentence, I found out that there is a very slight accent."You can be as loud as you want before the time is up, please wake them up so I can explain more." She tried her best to stand up, then 'walked' back to her corner.

[NPOV]

The bottle should be filled by now. I changed the bottle into another empty one. Though I do not believe in a certain god (or certain _gods_ , I may add), I prayed. I prayed that they would take me with them. Because in the first millisecond in three days, I don't want to die. I sighed, how long have I stood up? Ten seconds? Already feeling light headed, I began to wonder (again)," How can I make it?"

"Neelia?" I snapped my head when I hear Rose calling my name (at least she _is_ , who I assume),"We need your explanation." I packed the water, some makeshift weapons, and everything I had in my backpack. I grabbed it and head to 'Rose'.

 **A/N: And here come the time when you can start to guess and review where Neelia is from! I've dropped a few hints and promise to keep doing so, let's just make it a fun game, shall we not?**

 **Lot of love, Demonife 2017.03.25**


	4. Chapter 4

[RPOV]

That girl is weird. But that is none of my concern, at least for now. "Comrade," I started, "Get up... come on, we've been captured..." I said softly, shaking his wall-like shoulders. "Liss, Sparky..." Seriously? They're asleep! I decide to spray water on them, very effective. They woke up at once. Trusting Dimitri and Christian, I covered Lissa's mouth, just before she screamed. "Shh, Lis, it's me. It's okay. I'm here, Chrissy and Dimitri are right beside you. Yeah, I know it sucks, this f*cking situation, it's alright. (I removed my hand) Here, eat something, we'll get out of here soon." "Roza?" Dimitri asked, obviously noticing the ropes I cut. "Why are we here?" "Strigoi." I stated simply. "Is the food safe?" Christian asked, right before Lissa can place a piece of chocolate on her tongue. "Perhaps." I said. Taking it as an OK from me, the piece of chocolate soon disappeared in her throat. "Why..." "I'm stilled waiting for an explanation, too, Comrade." I answered before Dimitri could even get the question out. "Neelia!" I shouted.

"Who the heck is Neelia?" Christian asked, obviously not bothering to use his Moroi eyesight. "I the heck _am_ Neelia." said the slightly accented voice, clearly annoyed. I'm starting to like this girl, _and_ I don't even know her. She came into sight, and the four of us automatically sat into a circle, leaving a space for her to join. The "guardian mask" crept onto Dimitri's face. "Start talking, if you don't mind. My name is Rose." I said. A mixture or recognition and relief showed on her face. "I know," she said, somehow knowing that I'm going to interrupt her, she quickly added, "Listen first, I'll get to that later." The end came out as a plea, I nodded, but starting to get nervous, very nervous. Sparing a glance for Dimitri, his concern mirrored mine. "My name is Neelia. N-E-E-L-I-A," she started, voice hoarse, "I'm not from the country," that explains the accent, "I've been hiking with my friends and camping in the mountains for a week by now and I've been taken to here three days ago. I know what Strigoi are because they're exactly like what I've read in the books about you guys, Vampire Academy. I think I know about Morois and Dhampirs. Back to the Strigoi, they bring unconscious in every eight hours. They always come back after two hours and always throw in a corpse, then they kill and feed on whoever screams. Usually that means all of them. I haven't spoken or made a single noise in the last three days. The water is from a leak of a pipe over there (she pointed at her corner), it is safe to drink because that's why survived the last three days. The food is from me so consider that edible. Please get me out of here..." Wow! That's such a mind blowing speech. "She's not lying." said Lissa. "Then, who do you think we are?" asked Christian, "I mean, if there's really a 'book', let alone a series of them, we must be the characters, right? Who are we supposed to be, then?" That's actually a really good question, though I would not admit it. "You mean, names and titles?" asked Neelia. "Whatever shows that you know us." said Christian. "You are Lord Christian Ozera, beside you is Queen Vasilisa Dragomir, Guardian Dimitri Belikov, and Guardian Rosemarie Hathaway, and sorry, according to the books, you hated it when people call you Rosemarie, you'd prefer Rose." THAT leaves the four of us staring. "That _should_ be a book that I would want to read," said Lissa. slightly amused, "But I'm not the queen, yet, though I _was_ , for a week, turns out that the _late_ queen isn't dead, do you know who she is?" "Queen Tatiana Ivashkov." said Neelia, who sure knows what she is talking about. "So," said Dimitri, speaking for the first time in quite a while. "Why did you started to drink the very possibly poisonous water and stopped eating in the first place?" he asked. Neelia visibly paled, as if in shame.

 **A\N:After getting a review that kind of caught me off guard, I decided to do a little author's note that you DO NOT have to read about to clarify something. I AM NOT AN ATHEIST AND IN FACT I'M QUITE THE OPPOSITE. In fact, I consider myself a muti-religion believer. I accept the facts that gods are above us and I surely believe in karma. And by gods I mean that from Jesus to Alah, Greek to Roman to Egyptian to Norse gods to the Buddha, and much more. I believe in sprits among the living and souls after death. I enjoy to learn about religions and beliefs and the only reason I do not claim which religion is my desired end is because I don't think it's fair in way too many ways.**

 **Anyways, I haven't provide many hints about where Neelia is from in the chapter but you can still guess. Do feel free to let me know if there is anything wrong in/with my story, I really appreciate it.**

 **See you soon,**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.03.26**


	5. Chapter 5

[NPOV]

Being the only adult in the four inhumans (by that I mean being over 20), he's doing his job quite well. That really caught me off guard. Lissa (as she prefers in the stories) stared beside me as if reading my aura (maybe she really is). Panic and guilt seized me, but being left no choice, I told the truth. "I wasn't trying to live. I'd rather die of poisonous water or starving than giving them what they want. And that's why I got the food for you, you guys are the only chance for me to get out of here, please, I've given up hope more than once, please take me, or if you don't, I'll die knowing that I hadn't done that in vain. Please eat, I know that you can fight. I may not even be able to harm a strigoi, but I won't give in that easily, either." And cut. I spoke of all that's on my mind and slightly (okay, not slightly) off topic. They looked stunned. Maybe that's because I was shivering. They ate in silence for quite a while.

"We'll take you with us." said Rose and Dimitri at the same time, looking very surprised at each other, then, a knowing smile. "Only one condition," said Lissa suddenly, all of us (including Christian) forming question marks on our faces. "Only if you call me Lissa or Liz, call her Rose, him Christian, and him Dimitri or Guardian Belikov." I nodded. Rose smiled," or him Sparky if you want to." I nodded again.

[LPOV]

This girl sure has a strong and flexible mind. She is a few younger than us and hasn't broken down, yet. She hasn't even cried. I noticed that she has several blades in her backpack. She hadn't eaten in three days yet her body hasn't given up on her. Just as I was about to lose myself in my train of thoughts, I see that Neelia filling the now empty cup with half of water, just as I was wondering why she wouldn't she just drink from the bottle, she took a blade and slide it under her thumb. The crimson stream flowed by the tip of her thumb. She then squeezed her wrist and palm, thickening the stream and the water. Half-blood, half-water. I swallowed. "Drink," the fifteen year old stated. I looked at Christian, "Drink, you can fight." I said to him. "Exactly," interrupted Neelia, "Sorry Lissa, I can only give you half a cup because I'm noe going to make another cup with higher concentration. Or maybe Christian, you can drink from my wrist. Just try to keep your saliva out, I don't need the endrophins." But it's gonna hurt like hell..." said Christian, seriously considering the offer," And, you're no feeder." That's right, even the unbearable hunger can't make us ignore moral issues. Neelia gave us the smile that is almost warm, well, as warm as it could be after being held three days by "the evil creatures of the night". "Thanks for even letting that crossed your minds," she said," I can stand physical pain pretty well rather than letting my mind wander elsewhere with the bliss. And with no endrophins included, I shouldn't be able to get addicted, yeah? _And_ , come on, you guys can seriously fight _way_ better than any human being possibly can, but you need energy. To be honest, I'm counting on you vampires and half-vampires to get me out of here!" half joking and half offering my boyfriend her wrist."Seriously, what would you do without us joining you?" asked Christian, trying to return the joke, but obviously failed when Neelia's face darkened. "I'll starve myself to death, there won't be much blood left." That left us speechless, a sense of recognition crept on Guardian Belikov's face, as if he would have done the exact same thing. "Well, good that you met us, yeah?" said Rose, trying to lighten the mood. Neelia nodded and gave her a weak smile. "And Sparky? I highly recommend you and your highness to take your drink now before our only human here decides to change her mind."

 **A\N: And, cut! Here comes the fifth chapter, I hope all of you enjoyed! I have already done more chapters, but being the horrible typist I am, I can make no promises about when to update next. But I sure will try my best (if that makes you feel any better?). And again, all types of comment and suggestions welcome, I'll return soon!**

 **Greetings from Asia (yes, that's where I'm from),**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.03.28**


	6. Chapter 6

[NPOV]

Watching them speaking is... weird. It's familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. The way they speak, the words and usage are quite the same, but actually hearing the sentences coming from different voices is very new to me. I'm very curious about why they are here, shouldn't they be at court or university or something...? Just then a sharp pain from my wrist interrupted my chain of thoughts. I gasped, earning glances of concern from Rose and Dimitri. Dimitri looked somehow sick, I wonder if that has anything to do with his earlier life before the series has started (it's not like I can ask him or something). My fists clenched really hard and it efficiently stopped me from screaming. Then Christian just withdraw his fangs as fast as they penetrated my flesh and veins. He didn't take much, just enough to brighten his skin. And since there's still blood coming from my wounds, I took the bottle of water and poured a little on my wound, into the cup, offering Lissa another gulp. My wounds hurt and I feel dizzy (duh), but at least I know that I didn't endure pain in vain. I closed my eyes for a couple of minutes or so. Nobody tries to start a conversation, not like there's much to talk about (alright, despite my own curiously burning little brain).

I felt a flow of energy running across my wrist and fingers. I opened my eyes and can't just believe them. Lissa is using her magic, on me! It's exactly like what they/she (whatever/ whoever) described in the books! "You don't have to..." I tried to stop her. "Done!" she exclaimed happily. While trying to stand up, I found that Rose and Dimitri are deeply in a conversation, voice so low I can barely hear a sound. "No worries, girl," said Christian, following my gaze, "They don't plan on killing you or leaving you here, for now." he smirked. "Oh, what a relief!" I replied, finally locking my knees, successfully standing up straight. "Shouldn't you be dizzy or something?" asked Lissa, "I've healed your wounds but you should still suffer blood-loss." "Yeah," I replied, "But taking a blow on one head when was younger can teach one to handle dizziness rather well." And it's very true. "Wow, such a talent," said Christian, clearly amused. "Thanks, maybe I can teach you someday?" I offered. "Seriously, I thought that only Rose could annoy me with you so much, but I think I'm wrong." said Lissa, faking an angry face. "Well, I don't mind to share." said Rose, who just ended her conversation with Dimitri, winking at me. Just then, a tiny beep came from my watch, bringing me back to the hell-like reality that I've been staying in the last three days. I shivered, forcing the words out of my mouth, "Five more minutes..."

[RPOV] _*a little while ago*_

Lis and Sparky need to feed, especially Sparky (if we want him to fight, that is). As if sensing my concern, Neelia took her on of her blades and placed it somewhere on her palm. What else does she know other than our names? I turned into Dimitri, pulling him into a huge, he let me. "Do you trust her, Comrade?" I asked, looking at him straight into his eyes. He sighed, " I don't know, Roza. I really don't." "What do you think of the book? Vampire Academy?" I threw in another question. "I think it's the first thing we should talk about, with her, _after_ we get out of here." he said. _If_ we get out of here, we silently added together. "Can you place her accent?" I kept on the so-called conversation, switching to lighter topics. "Not really, but according to her skin-tone and features, East Asia, I guess." Then we sat in comfortable silence. (Well, as comfortable as it could be in a evil-blood-sucker-owned basement.)

"...but I think I'm wrong." said Lissa, faking an angry face. I decided to join in the conversation. "Well, I don't mind to share." I said, six eyes on me (excluding Dimitri) I winked. When I was going to say something else, I heard a sound of a beep. It took me a second to find out the source - Neelia's watch. And Neelia just suddenly started to shiver really badly. "Five...more...m...minutes." It came out barely a whisper. All of us stood up.

 **A/N: Hey, there! Demonife here. In the after note of this chapter I would like to tell you something about Neelia. Neelia is my own character that I decide to put into this fanfict and I imply myself on her very much. In other words: Neelia and I have about the same cultural and educational background, age, appearance and, of course, the same race and nationality. Most of her usages in sentences and reaction to stuff is not exactly made up but also the things I would have done or would have thought. Always feel free to tell me about how you think about it and if the characters from the original series are OOC or such.**

 **Happy reading (whether it's my story or not :D),**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.03.30**


	7. Chapter 7

[CPOV]

That girl Neelis there was shaking like crazy, but she still managed to put on her backpack and stood up. Lissa put a hand on her shoulder and cooed, "It's alright, hon. You are going to get out of here with us, since you know who we are, you know we'll do it, right?" Neelia nodded, but still shaking. I sent a heat wave to her, hoping to calm her down, it worked. "Any possibility that I can help? As a distraction?" Neelia asked carefully, leaving me shocked. This girl here has a strong mind, I have to give it to her.

[DPOV]

That human there is the most un-mysterious myth. She is witty even though in fear, at such a young age. Willing to sacrifice, knowing what's for the best. And now she's here asking if she could draw some attention from the evil creatures that have held her captive for three days. Despite the fact that I do not want to admit it, it actually helps, and that's more than a little. "Ah, yes." I said to her directly for the first time, "Is it okay for you to let them focus on you for more than a few seconds or so?" She looked like she regretted to ask but still nodded. "Two usually come first to throw a bloody corpse, then five will come in to grab and feed on whoever screams." she said, pointing to the bloody mess all around us, probably wondering if we can see in the dim light coming under the door. I nodded for confirmation. "The scent of blood will be so strong that they can't even tell whether there are survivors or not, so hiding among the new dead bodies with remaining body heat is not that hard. They must have lost count, if they count heads at all." Neelia said. Rose laced her fingers through mine and I held her tight."Count heads?" she asked. "Just a slang." replied Neelia. The door opened. Rose and I immediately let go of each other and moved into fighting distance. Neelia turned to face the Strigoi.

[NPOV]

The flash of metal caught my attention for a second. They must be the stakes (they'd better be). A corpse flew in and before I can figure the gender, it hit the ground and shattered to pieces. The body is frozen. Why and how? Liquid nitrogen? For what? No one dared to make a sound. "How brave. Dhampirs and Morios!" said a Strigoi. It is the first time that I have heard any of them speak in three days. " _Theoretically_ , that means no kills. But this time, I'll make an expectation." there comes the second time. No reply. But that didn't seem to ease his _hospitality_. "After all, you're all quite famous, eh? Christian Ozera, the youngest Strigoi attack survivor, but being tied up don't really help with your defensive magic, eh? Dimitri Belikov, the killer of dozens of Strigoi before turning into one yourself, then controls the whole Siberia and half of America. Rose Hathaway, the only Dhampir who has ever let a single Strigoi go at free will, and finally, Vasilisa Dragomir. The definer of the rare element Spirit, the ex-queen and now the un-doubtful heir!" Seriously, alphabetical order? He didn't even realized that his companion has already been staked! I decided that it's time to make my appearance known. "And a lowly human that you've lost count several days ago," I said dramatically, getting his full attention. He lunged, but I kept speaking. "So if you don't mind, can I just leave already?" With the raising tone at the end of my question, a figure with swift movement made the undead immortal - well, dead. "Should I scream for the rest to come?" I asked no one in particular. "Nah," said Rose, "they don't even remember you being here, let's just head out. Join me, Sparky?" "Sure," said Christian, kissing Lissa on the cheeks. They headed out. Dimitri, Lissa, and I stayed by the door.

A tall thin figure wandered in not noticing us by the door, in the almost non-existence light. But aren't they supposed to have super eyesight or something? "Hey, what's taking so long, man? I froze the corpse, I let you awaken me, aren't I supposed to get fed already?" Somehow he seems like an ex-water-using-Moroi. I backed away from the door, footsteps echoed, drawing his attention, his back now facing Dimitri and Lissa. He (the Strigoi) must be confused, considering he hasn't drained me, yet. "You there?" he asked again, more carefully, trying to make sense of my figure. "Soul? No. Drop-dead material? Yes." I whispered the loudest as possible. He lunged. I (tried but unsuccessfully failed to) backed away. Then he kneeled before me, Dimitri behind with a stake in hand. "Please tell me you waited him to lunge because thenhe won't feel you getting close?" Thanks to my adrenal rush and paralyzed thoughts, it came out broken and accusing. His guardian mask firmly in place, "Let's get out of here." is his only response.

[CPOV]

We finished the four of them, with one slipping through before the fight even started. As soon as we're done we headed back to the room. The three of them walked quietly to us, the Strigoi nowhere to be seen. I opened my arms for Lissa while Dimitri did the same for Rose. Not saying anything, Neelia just watchced.

 **A/N: And that's it for my longest chapter so far! Feel free to tell me whatever you think about it or if you've heard the slang Neelia used before.**

 **Happy fooler's day (or April Fools, whatever you call it),**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.04.01**


	8. Chapter 8

[RPOV]

No one knows what to do with the human. Since it's still dark outside, we decided to go as far as possible away from the basement, which turns out to be underneth a deserted building. In the wilderness. (Cliche.) Humans are weak, perhaps no better than Moroi, but they do have great endurance (but still nothing compared to us Dhampirs though). We should get back to court, but not before we get some food and rest. Hell, why hasn't anyone thought of bringing a cell phone into an arena? We don't even know where we are! We walked and walked, hoping to find civilization (, and failed). Every single one of us looked tired, but fully knowing that we can't stop before the sun rises. We moved in silence, Neelia following us like we're her only chance of survival. Oh wait, maybe we _are_! She trusted us like we know everything to do. Seriously, what had the series told her about us?

[DPOV]

Every being deserves a chance to live, and to me personally, especially the one willing to sacrifice for others. That girl sort of got me on that. But when my duties comes first, that human can't be in my priority. They come first. They are more than my charges, and if I dare to call them, and are also my friends, where my loyalty belongs. However, when moral issue are involved, they make everything harder. The four of us need to confront her about the series, fast. I just want this to get over. I sighed, and stopped my tracks immediately when I caught the first glimpse of sunlight.

[LPOV]

Relief washed over me when the sun is out. I suppose we can get some rest now? That poor girl is barely holding herself. I looked into her aura (, Adrian should be proud). Neelia isn't feeling anything major at this moment, only tiredness and very little fear. I thought humans would be afraid of vampires at least? Though compared to Strigoi we surely seem like fluffy teddy bears. Now her aura is full of curiosity. Of what? Us? Guess that we should find it out, soon.

[NPOV]

80 hours without sunlight shouldn't have left me speechless when the sky color started to lighten. They sat in sort of a circle and I decided not to join them. They are having a conversation that all of them are deeply engaged in, which means we (or rather, they) won't be leaving anytime soon, so I decided to set up a tent, sunshine can't be good for all of them. Soon Dimitri joined me putting up the tent and that sure made the thing a heck lot easier. Rose, Lissa, and Christian soon joined us beside the already-built tent. "What's the tent for?" asked Rose. I pointed at the now-paling Christian and the already-paled Lissa who are now looking curiously and gratefully at me. I gestured them to go in. "Oh," Rose said, failing to hide her uneasiness. "Thanks. That's very generous of you. So... mind if we have a small talk about what's going on? To get to know each other more or so? And honestly, I'm very curious about the series you mentioned earlier." "Sure," I answered, not having anything else better to say or to do. "What do you want to know?"

[RPOV]

I don't know which part bothers me more, in fact that she's human, in fact that she's a foreigner, in fact that she knows about us, or maybe in fact that she's younger than all of us. "The stories you mentioned, tell us about it." I said, not knowing much about reading, let alone books, maybe it's not my question to ask. "There are six books in the series, the first book being called Vampire Academy, and so is the series. Then Frost Bite, Shadow Kiss, Blood Promise, Spirit Bound, and the finally Last Sacrifice. Are there are a few chapters post Last Sacrifice called Homecoming. They start from Dimitri bringing you and Lissa back from Portland to the events that occur when Dimitri and you visit Russia and basically everything in between. In other words, you are the main character." Wow! As the word sink in, my brain just over loaded. So Dimitri just took over and ask the questions he had in mind. "What is the genre and who's the publisher?" "Young adult and fantasy. Richel Meed." "What else do you know? You said that she's the main character, what about the people around her?" "The story mentioned who she has met and what they have done to or with each other." Dimitri arched an eyebrow. "So she has met my family, I suppose you know about them, too?" As Dimitri being unlike Dimitri (perhaps of the suddenly occurred events causing too much pressure, and seriously, I don't blame him), he challenged, "What's my youngest sister's name? And who is Zemy and what he has to do with Rose?" Wait, what if she could actually answer it? It's creepy! "Viktoria. Zemy in the stories is Ibriham Mazur who prefers Abe and he's Rose' father." I stared at Neelia with disbelief. Just thinking the very personal information and humans reading it as some fictional novels. I glared at her and that must have frightened her. Neelia quickly went through her backpack and pulled out her smart phone. "Here are some photos that I screen captured from the e-book of your series, see it for yourself." I kept still. Dimitri took the phone and stared. Suddenly, Christian came out of the tent, anger shown clearly on his face, with a fireball in his hand, he shouted, "So all this time you've got a way to contact others but do not bother to tell?" "Make the fire gone, please!" squeaked Lissa behind him. Oh, no. This is NOT good. Neelia looked stunned, scared, and hurt, Dimitri gave her a knowing glare. "Hello? Care to explain?" I said, more of a statement than a question. "SIM cards don't work cross borders, not that I'm sure there is service here in the wilderness anyway." said Neelia emotionlessly, then sighed. "Which means that she can neither call anywhere nor answer any calls." added Dimitri helpfully. Then here comes the deadly awkward silence. "Sorry," said Christian, breaking the silence. " _Bun Dan_. It's okay. How long are we staying? If it's more than an hour, I'm sleeping a little." Neelia said, the _Bun_ _Dan_ muttered under her breath. I looked at Dimitri for confirmation. "Yes, you can sleep." said Dimitri. By the time Lissa and Christian were back at the tent, Neelia has lay on the ground and made herself a pillow by her jacket. She gave us a longing look, as if afraid that we won't be here when she wakes. "Don't worry, we'll still be here." I cooed, then asked. driven by pure curiosity, " What does _Bun Dan_ mean?" She smiled, actually smiled. "It is use to refer someone stupid in my language," she than curled into a ball and closed her eyes, effectively ending the conversation.

 **A/N: And here it is! My first chapter that holds more than 1K! Apologies for the lack of updates, and I'll stop the torture here by sparing you a long author's note.**

 **Hopefully to see you (not visually) soon,**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.04.09**


	9. Chapter 9

[NPOV]

I shot up when I was suddenly awake. It's so warm and bright. Is that why I can't open my eyes? Not being able to see anything, I started to panic. How long was I asleep? I started to pat things franticly and rapidly around me, trying to make one thing out of another. "Calm down, kid." said a deep voice with a Russian accent. Then everything came back to me. It was real. _This is real._ The "kidnap", the vampires, the Moroi, Dhampir, and Strigoi. I slowly open my eyes, a millimeter at a time (and for those who don't know how much a millimeter is, check the international system of units). There sat Dimitri Belikov, fitting all the descriptions from the stories, my cell phone still in hand, and Rose sound asleep beside him. "I've read the quotes that you've saved. All of them. Some were rather...privet. You must have known us well, or so you think. It's weird to see, our life being put into words, being spread in front of stranger's eyes. After reading these, you'll know us, or rather, Rose, than most of the people she sees in her everyday life. It's going to be hard for us to interact, you know what I mean?" he said. "Yes, I answered the question truthfully. "But if today you're in my place, you met the 'characters' from the stories you've always read about. You think you know them, and have always respected and look up to them; and here they are, right in front of your eyes, because their worst enemy has got you..." I started to ramble, "I believe you can image?" I asked. He thought for a minute, and said," I can't relate to that, but I'll try to image. How come do you believe that all the information the book have given is true?" he asked, tone filled with wonder. "I don't," I said, he arched an eyebrow, "Not all of them," I explained, " I try to make the best guess and theory using the story as basic information. So far I'd confirmed a few points that were exactly the same as the series has described." I said, somewhat a little proudly. "For example?" "You have better eyesight and hearing. You also drive silver stakes through un-beating hearts." I paused at the thought, Strigoi are just like a nightmare coming to life. Dimitri nodded. waiting for me to keep talking. "But if all of those were true, you're supposed to be quite anti-social, and certainly not the talking- to-strangers-to-know-more-about-anything type. But again here we are, talking about a teen fantasy that involves a great part of your life, after you met Rose at least." Then I stopped, giving him time to digest what I had just said. "You have such a...flexible mind, I guess," he said, frowning. "Reading helps." I said with a smile, wondering why the series described him as "anti-social". Maybe people were just too caught up in his reputation to really get to know who he is actually like? Or maybe it's Rose rubbing off on him. We stayed in a comfortable silence then I stood up. " I'm going for a walk, I won't be far." I said to him, not that anyone would be listening anyway, just in time to hear my stomach growl, how long was it since I have eaten properly? Dimitri looked at me with concern. "I just want to look around while the sun is up, I be okay." I assured, then it's my turn to look at him (along with Rose and the others in the tent) with concern. "You won't leave while I'm gone, will you?" Voicing my thoughts, I panicked a little. "No, that won't happen, you have my word." I never knew such a simple sentence could be such a powerful reassurance. I put on a jacket and grabbed my knife, an almost empty bottle, and a compass. Since we're kind of in the mountains, I headed south. Since according to Feng Sui, there will be a higher chance of having human population. And the truth to told: I just needed time to think and grieve. If I don't, my brain is going to overload very soon with everything happening.

 **A/N:This time, may I present you a shorter chapter (especially comparing to the last one)! More RPOV in the next chapter hopefully to be updated soon!**

 **So, here's the thing: I have been working on this story quite hard and have finished more than 20 chapters. And here's the other thing: I'm a horrible typist. The speed of my writing is at least 13 times faster than my typing. Being a normal person who doesn't do writing as a lifetime career (yet), I can't get hold of my family laptop every single day, and when I do, all I do is type and publish, what I can promise is more chapters to continue the story line and what I can't in when. Thank you for read my story (and in this case, author's note as well). Have a nice day.**

 **Typing as fast as I personally possibly cancans cherishing my laptop-time,**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.04.15**

 **P.S. Thank you Australia for most of my visitors and views, here's a shoutout to AUS!**


	10. Chapter 10

[RPOV]

I woke up just to look into the most beautiful brown eyes. "Your turn, sleep a little." I said to Dimitri, sitting up, "You finished the 'quotes' she gave you?" he nodded, speaking of her," Where is she?" "On a walk, said to be back soon." I frowned, "that's..." "not safe." said Dimitri, cutting me off, " But since the sun is up, and she has been through quite a lot, some alone time could only do good." Ah, my comrade, always so rational. "Sleep." I said again, and he did. Having nothing better to do, I enjoyed the sunlight. Catching a sight of Neelia's backpack, I decided to take a look at her cell phone. With no means to invade privacy, I just wanted to read to quotes. _'If you weren't so psychotic, you'd be fun to hang around.' 'Funny, I feel the same way about you, too.'_ Ah, the good old times. I kept reading. It's kind of reading my own diary that I have never kept. Then I felt a pang in my chest. How could anyone know anything about this? I sure did put up quite a show, and they (whoever "they" are) should have paid me for that. But still, having something (or someone, for that matter) recording what you (in here, I meant _I_ , obviously) said or what you thought is just too much more than creepy. I mentally added this on my to-do list when this is over: to find out what the f*ck is going on with my life and this damned series. Not feeling guilty (this I have done this several times, and this time not shame of my intentions), I went through Neelia's backpack. Blades (lots of them, are they all hers?), clothing, (plain and boring, not the dressy type I see), some cash, body cleaning supplies, and IDs (a green passport included). Where the heck is she from? And can we really thrust her? If so, how far can we thrust her? From my experience with humans, they are always trust worthy, what could she possibly want from us? I really need a conversation with her, preferably with Lis beside me to look into her aura or better yet, seek into her mind. This won't happen now, but the sooner shall be better, and I will not play with my chances.

[NPOV]

After two minutes of heading south, I smelt something in a breeze. It's smoke. Smoke means fire which usually means human. The wind came from west which is where I shall go. Not wanting to get lost, I took off my jacket and tied it on a tree. I ran and ran (as fast as days without proper meals possible), trying not to lose the sense of direction in the progress. I caught a faint sound that could only be made by humans. Taking a deep breath, I ran faster, ignoring my cursing legs. Then I was truly terrified by what I saw (consider that _very_ hard because the madness I had just been through). four children surrounded a girl who is tied on a tree. They looked about five years old but somehow the girl seemed younger. They are throwing fruits and rocks at her. I stepped in, just in time to realize that the girl is neither crying nor making a sound. "Why are you doing this to her?" I demanded angrily. The kids just screamed and started to run away. I could only imagine what they saw: a girl with hoarse voice, dark under-eye circles, with a blade in hand sounded pissed off, not to mention that I looked way older than them (as I really am). I hold my blade in the correct way (not just have it in hand and show off), the girl stared at me, eyes wide opened. "I'll cut the ropes, I won't hurt you." And that's what I did. "Do you want some water?" She shook her head then took my palm, 'stranger', she wrote letter by letter on my palm and smiled sheepishly. I took a sip in front of her and tried to give her the bottle again. She drank and drank and emptied the bottle. "What a waste," I said, looking at the fruit thrown on the ground, barely missing the girl. I fought the urge to pick up the fruit and shove it in my stomach, that will certainly frighten the girl to death. "You live around? What 's your name?" I asked the little girl. She nodded then spelt 'May' on my palm. "Let me walk you home?" I offered, I knew that I had to get to town anyway, just not knowing what I should do when I get there, that is. May nodded with a smile and basically dragged me across town. I followed like a lost puppy.

May is rich, daughter of the rich, at least. She took me to the largest building in town (as far as I could tell), with a middle aged worried-looking woman standing in front. "Mama!" May squeaked and ran into the fence straight into the woman's waiting arms. "Oh baby, baby you speak!" exclaimed the woman. May jumped out of her arms and started signing rapidly in ASL (or something ought to be ASL, in my understanding), which I can't understand, probably explaining why she brought a homeless-looking stranger-teenager home. "Why don't you go and get her to come in?" her mother said and signed the words (I assume) at the same time. May ran straight to me, grabbed my hand, and dragged me in front of her mama. "Thank you!" she squeaked. Her mother stared at me, eyes widened, "May never speaks due to unknown reasons. You must have done something extremely shocking, what have you done?" "I think I may have scared her?" I asked carefully. Her expression turned to anger, "How could you...?" just then. May grabbed her mother's hand and started to sign. "You saved her?" her mother asked in disbelief. I nodded, then fainted.

I woke up in a house with May and her mother beside me. "How long was I...?" I asked, trying to get up. "Five minutes, just in time for my daughter to fill me in. Thank you very much for helping my daughter to get home safe. Can I get you anything?" "Uh, yes, actually, can I use the bathroom, please?" yeah, what do you expect from me? I've been off the hook of human civilization for days! "Anything," she paused for a few seconds and said, "Where are you staying for the night? I'm pretty sure that you're not from here? Do you mind me asking your name?" "My name is Neelia and my friends and I were lost in the woods, I don't know where I'm staying tonight _and_ I really need to use the bathroom." When I got out, I found that May is signing something rapidly with her mother (again). "Madam?" I asked, wondering what is going on. "We have a spare bedroom. If you and your friends would like to come for dinner, I'm offering a one-night stay. The family name is Weiners." with that, she walked away. May studied me with curiosity. "I'm going to get my friends, they're not anywhere nearby. Did you asked for me to stay?" she nodded and grabbed my palm. 'me. go. with. you ?' "You'll have to ask your mama who doesn't appreciate young daughter bringing stray teenagers home." I told her, which she seemed to understand perfectly. I've got a feeling that May is one of those high IQ kids that developed superior language and logic skills. That may explain the bullying from kids of the same age.

Luckily declined, I don't want to bring a kid to hungry vampires.

 **A/N: Yes! A new record for the words count in a single chapter! And a whole, perfectly complete week without touching the family laptops. Anyways feel free to correct me if any mistakes enjoy reading!**

 **Breaking through personal records and enjoying myself way too much,**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.04.23**


	11. Chapter 11

[RPOV]

Apparently, a small walk for humans means disappearing for a few hours and to come back with glittering eyes. "We need to talk." I said to Neelia. "Okay," she said, turning to a serious mode almost immediately. But let me feed Lissa and Christian first, I've found a town of/for humans at southwest. A half an hour walk should get us there." I agreed, Lis and Sparky were awake anyway, and besides, the weaker she gets, the harder it'll be for her to lie. "A woman offered us dinner and a one-night stay at a spare suite for two in her house," said Neelia, drawing blood on her wrist. How did she managed that? Getting us a place to crash and taking the pain almost unnoticeable besides a little wince? It's two forty in the afternoon for humans and the sunshine is getting mild. "Lis, Sparky, get your lazy asses out here, drink some blood, and start packing!" I said, loud enough for Moroi to hear but too quiet enough to wake a sleeping Dimitri. "Neelia," I said, starting the conversation, "I think we have to work out some trust issues." Ugh, I _so_ not good at talking like this! "I trust you unconditionally because I've read quite a lot about you guys but not the other way around, I understand that and will try my best to gain the chance to prove myself trust worthy, and hopefully, your friendship, but I wouldn't count on that." Neelia said solemnly, too solemn for an average fifteen year old. But again, getting kidnapped and watch human beings die in every brutal way is nowhere near average teen-life. "But please, don't leave me here," she added, which came out as a plea. Now, _this_ is a line that I _will not_ cross. Lissa put a comforting arm around her shoulders. "Give her some time." Lissa said, only loud enough for a Dhampir to hear. "But I still don't trust her enough to let her have my back." I stated. Being the guardian of the ex-queen and my personal experiences before _and after_ that does not allow me to trust easily, not that it's a bad thing or anything. Lissa nodded, so I decided to end this topic, for now. "Sparky, wake Dimitri and let's get packing." I said. I then saw Lissa trying to heal Neelia. "Just stop the bleeding, I could keep the scars." said Neelia. "Why?" Lissa asked. "Save your magic." Neelia replied. So she _knows_ about the spirit darkness, but I got a feeling that that's not all. "How did you get us dinner and a place to stay, anyway?" Christian asked. "I met a girl who was bullied because she is highly intelligent and rarely speaks and freed her from being tied to a tree. I offered to walk her home and she just drag me across town straight to the biggest house. She is obviously mommy's girl and asked her mother to let me stay. Her mother, is not happy that her daughter invited a stray teenager to stay but complied. A good meal guaranteed I drew quite some blood. Maybe you can make some calls in town?" The last question came out more like a statement. "I'm going to leave the calling thing to Lissa. Thanks, by the way." Christain said, emptying the cup of blood. Neelia just waved her hand in dismissal. We followed Neelia (to wherever she's taking us) in slience. "Did you guys really referred me as a god back at the academy?" Dimitri asked suddenly. Lissa and Christian looked at me confused. Neelia smiled. I burst out laughing. "It's a novice thing." I explained, then I saw something. "Hey, Neelia! Isn't that your jacket over there on the tree?" I grabbed the jacket and handed it to her. "Yes, thank you. Now we head west." Just before she finished the sentence, I caught a faint smell that can only be described as human civilization (it's quite easy to tell after god-knows-how-long in wilderness). I picked up my pace and they followed, looks like I'm not the only one eager to get rid of the wilderness. Seriously, when we get out of here (wherever where we are now), I really need to talk to the queen, or maybe the whole council, preferably something about the location of the f*cking arena.

Finally, we reached the outskirts of town. A young girl ran right at us, or Neelia, to be exact, and jumped into her waiting arms, which knocked Neelia on the ground. The young girl giggled. "This is May," Neelia said to us, "May, these are my companions." she said to May. May looked up at us. I tensed, realizing that May is a Dhampir. I looked around to find Lissa, Christian, and Dimitri staring at May. Neelia noticed and said, "May," she then forced a smile, "Why don't you go home first and tell your mama that I've got four companions with me?" The little nodded eagerly and ran happily to the other side of town, not aware of the tension. "What happened?" the fifteen-year-old asked with concern. The four of us (excluding Neelia) looked at one another, should we tell her.

A/N: Eleventh chapter and I still type slowly. Anyways, enjoy the story and here's a pre-Happy Labor's Day! It's in 5/1 in my country and most workers and get a day off. I personally respect labor as I would respect anyone else but sadly not many think so.

Wanting to get my summer vacation for more typing already,

Demonife

2017.04.29


	12. Chapter 12

[NPOV]

"What happened?" I asked, I really hoped that I didn't do anything wrong. I started to get nervous. Rose, Lissa, and Christian looked at Dimitri. It's now his call. "Neelia," he started slowly. "Do you know that..." I rudely interrupted, it came out sharper than I meant, just to realize that the few seconds of silence had me stressed out already. He sighed, "Neelia, May is a Dhampir." "What?" It came out as a high pitched voice I never knew I had. We have now caught the attentions of some passers-by. "There's nothing to look at, mind your own business." Lissa said to them clamly. Yeah, why don't I just mind my own business? Why do I think I'm helping them by bringing them here? They were perfectly fine on their own! Then a question popped in my head : Is this what being compelled feels like? Not that it's important or anything, but why didn't I just leave the decision to them? Will they leave me? They're like all I have at this moment! "Neelia? Neelia!" said Rose snapping me out of my train of thoughts. "I see fear in your aura," said Lissa," Are you afraid of us?" I shook my head. "Then what...?" Christian sort of hit him hard on the head, "Are you afraid that we will leave you, like alone?" he asked, I nodded. His face darkened, "Well, after my parents, you know, the guardians just turned very serious. Being left alone was all I could think of and be afraid of." "Sorry, I didn't mean to." Rose said, Christian just waved his hands in dismissal, Rose continued, "But why the sudden fear anyway?" "It's always there, but there was a sudden increase." Lissa corrected. "Right, but still, why?" Did she really had to ask? "Did you just use compulsion on the humans?" Dimitri asked Lissa. "Yes, " answered Lissa, "I told them to...mind their own business." "Ah," said Rose getting the point, "Humans are such easy compelled beings...Anyways, Lis, can you just undo it or something?" Lissa just stared into my eyes. I can't help but to notice how green her eyes are, no romantic feelings, but you're born and raised in Asia, all the eyes you could ever see are brown. Then something inside of me snapped, I blinked once, twice, thrice. "I have no idea that May isn't human." I said weakly. "It's okay." assured Dimitri. "Well, technically she _is_ , just not entirely." Rose muttered, earning a smirk from Christian. I started to walk into town, they followed, not letting their guard down. "Was that how she basically dragged me across town?" I asked no one in particular. "That is highly possible." said Dimitri. Then we walked in silence. "We're here." I said as the beautiful white buliding came into sight. "Wards," said Dimitri, Rose nodded and said, "I wonder whose peice that should be." The door opened with forcing a smile with May in her arms. Her expression softened immediately when she saw Lissa. Another blonde lover I see. "You must be Neelia's companions. Call me Emily." What? First name basis? I mentally sighed while they exchange name, why do blond people tend to become more popular in almost everywhere? "May, why don't you shoe them their room? And, Neelia, come with me, will you?" said. Rose shot me a worry glance but didn't stop me, or 'Emily' for that matter. I followed her to the other side of the of house. "What can I help you with, ma'am?" I asked carefully. She shoved a few towels in my arms. "Take a shower, will you?" she said with annoyance. I was stunned, reason unknown. "Thank you, ma'am." "I just don't want my daughter to get sick." Ouch, that hurts, but I just nodded. May appeared and dragged me to 'my' room. While I was going to knock, (though it's technically 'my' room, my companions were in there first) May just opened the door and walked in like she owned this place (as a second thought, she _does_ ), four heads snapped at us and I awkwardly said hi and passed the towels. "Mind if I go first?" I asked pointing at the bathroom in the suite. They nodded. May grabbed my hand: play, with, me, later. With that, she was out of the room with a flash. Yup, definitely Dhampir. I grabbed my backpack and went in the bathroom. All I can hear before turning on the water is "Emily is human."

[RPOV]

I was quite surprised when Neelia led us to the largest building in town, more surprised when the girl, May, who Neelia held high turned out to be a Dhampir, I guess that happens when you just run into people who you've 'read about'. After making sure that the Weiners have nothing to with the Keepers, I wondered and wondered who May's Moroi father will be. Hopefully, he had connections with the Court. Because the thing is, you can't just walk to a payphone and call Court.

 **A/N: This is the 12** **th** **chapter that should have been posted last week but I lamely failed. An unexpected family trip happened. There is a fat chance that I won't be able to make it next week so...yeah. That's about it. Happy mother's day (second Sunday of May) to all the wonderful mothers! Hope you enjoyed this short chapter and kindly point out any mistakes of any kinds. Again, I appreciated more than it seems and/or you can image.**

 **So until next time,**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.05.13**

 **P.S. And happy birthday to my friend/ my clown/ one of my favorite inspirations/ an amazing artist Fifi the Snowcat!**


	13. Chapter 13

[RPOV]

The suite is quite big, I mean quite big for two. So we had a tiny problem: there are five of us. Not that we could ask for much in our situation, but a girl can always hope, you know? "I'm going to ask if I could use the phone," I notified my friends, popping out of the bed which I basically lunged at after entering the room. "Where or who are you calling?" asked a frowning Lissa. "Abe." I said simply, she nodded and I left the suite.

I found Emily in the kitchen, she saw me but made no gesture. "Um, excuse me, may I borrow the phone please?" I asked uneasily. "In the living room, make it short." she said coldly. Seems like I aren't welcome here, anyway, I got what I came for. I dialed the number, he picked up at the fifth ring, probably thinking that who the heck did that number belonged to. "Mazur." he said in a tight voice. "Old man!" I said cheerfully. "Little girl," he sighed in relief, "Everyone thought you were dead along with the others! Where are you? Are they with you?" "Uh, actually," I said, "I was hoping you could answer the first question for me. Yes, the three of them are with me along with a human." "A human?" he asked in a confusion-filled voice. "Yeah, old man, you know, long story as usual, I would love to fill you in, but I don't think the owner of the phone will agree. Just, let me know where we are, let the Belikovs, my mother, and Court know we're alive, for now, and we'll sort the other things later, okay?" I said, a little anxious about the glare Emily is giving me. "Ah, yes. Call me again later and I'll let you know where you are. I promise you the Belikovs and your mother, but I don't think it's a good idea to call court through me. Princess Dragomir or Lord Ozera may do the job, tell them not to call Court but inform the queen personally, the less to know the better it'll be. Take care, kiz. Tell me the name of the human and call me in a hour, I'm not comfortable with him or her around." he said, and hung up right after I gave him Neelia's "real name" I got from her passport. "Tell them that dinner is in two hours." said Emily as I was returning the suite, not bothering to wait for a reply, she turned and walked back to the kitchen.

I opened the door to find only Dimitri in sight, resting on a sofa. "Where are they?" I asked. "Taking a bath." he replied, not opening his eyes. I joined him, resting my head on his shoulder. "And Neelia?" I asked. "Being dragged away by May." he replied," The kid seems to like her, a lot." he then added, playing with my hair. "Do you think we can trust her? After all she has done, for now, are those for her or for us as well?" I asked softly, relaxing in his embrace. "And by those she has done, you mean?" I can see him arching an eyebrow though my eyes were closed. "Getting us out of there, giving us food, and getting us here." He held me tighter and said, "From what I can tell, she has been completely honest with us. She got us out of there may be because that she wanted to get out of there as well, but sharing her food, her water, and tent afterwards? It may purely be because that she knew that keeping us fit is her best shot, but it's still selfless. Remember when she drew her blood for Christian and Lissa? She knows enough about them to know that she didn't have to do that, at first I thought it's for the high, but she asked them to keep the saliva out, that's selfless. I know that most human are not reliable, but sometimes the best rises from the worst, and she may be it." "Ah, comrade, how much I miss your Zen lessons." We then sat in comfortable silence. As Lissa and Sparky emerged from the bathroom, Dimitri grabbed his clothes and towel and whisper something only meant for me to hear, "Care to join me, Roza?" I quickly did the same after catching a giggle from Lissa.

[NPOV]

After days of experiencing the wilderness and murderous encounters, all I need is a innocent but very smart little child. Well, a little child that can drag you across town and make her mother let you stay the night, that is. Now that I know May can physically speak, the reason she won't talk must be mental, and I know it's better not to ask. After I finished my shower and brushed my teeth, I left the bathroom just in time for May to drag me to her room. Judging by her strength, she may truly be a Dhampir. The phrase 'to born with a golden spoon held in mouth' came to my mind. _You are just like my mama and classmates._ She wrote on a little white broad of hers. "You mean the way you are like Rose and Dimitri?" she nodded, confirmed that she _is_ a Dhampir. _And my father..._ before she finished, I interrupted, "Is just like Christian and Lissa? But your mother can't tell?" She nodded at me with surprise. _How do you know?_ "My companions told me, they can tell, too." _You can't?_ "No," I shook my head, " Not by myself, I'm just like your mama in this." She nodded, than studied me curiously. "Do you want to ask or tell me something?" She nodded, than started to rite on her little white broad. Not wanting me to stop her mid-sentence, she gestured me to close my eyes. I did. When she poke me in the arm to open my eyes, I saw a very log question. _You are one of the very few who did not question me for the reason for not speaking and the 'mature' usages in sentences, why?_ I paused for a while and told her truthfully, "I believe things happen for reasons. Yes, I may be curious, who I am to interfere? If being like that is who you really are, you being yourself is all I could ask for. Your classmates are doing that out of their own stupidity." I looked at the stunned little girl. "Has nobody ever told you that?" I half-joked, she nodded, I sighed. "Few people know that or think like that nowadays, share it someday with someone you consider worthy, okay?" May nodded and we share a smile. "So," I started, "what can we do together?" Her smile brightened. "Braid my hair and I'll do yours." she said loud and clear. Seems like she only speaks when she is very pleased. Braid her hair? So much for being a five-year-old genius.

After I finished doing her hair, I realized that there is one thing that geniuses can't get without actual work: experience. May works perfectly fine with the theory of braiding hair, but with the lack of experience of actual doing, my hair-do came out not so appealing. _Can I tell you something?_ I nodded and she signaled me forward, "Weieners was my mama's name," she said, I frowned, I thought using the father's name was usually the custom? "My father's family name was Conta."

 **A/N: A longer chapter for the lack of updates, thank you for reading my story and hope you enjoy!**

 **Happy Dragon Boat Festival (Check on the internet if you have no idea what that is),**

 **Demonife**

 **207.05.27**


	14. Chapter 14

[NPOV]

Conta? Isn't that supposed to be a "royal" name? I froze. This can't be "normal", right? After "defrosting", I spoke uneasily to May, "Um, May? Can you please do my hair later?" _Why?_ "I have to go talk to Lissa...I have to tell her what you just told me. Please, I know it's supposed to be a secret, but that may affect her greatly, can I tell her, please?" I said, urgency in my tone. She frowned, then started writing rapidly on her broad. _Okay, but you have to let me do your hair later!_ "Sure, I promise." I sighed in relief. She poked her little finger at me, I did the same then our little fingers intertwined and our thumbs pressed onto each other's. "Da gou gou," I said, she looked at me curiously so I explained, "That's how we say it in our language, pinky swear in English, right?" She nodded. I grabbed her marker and whiteboard and wrote "打勾勾" on it. "And that's how we write it." I told May as I was leaving her room and closing the door. I then ran straight to the guest suite.

[LPOV]

I was sitting and resting on the bed with Christian when a Neelia with messy hair and serious expression burst in. Her aura showed shock with panic, and a little hope. "What happened?" I asked. "May just told me about her father." She said with no visible emotion, "She said that her father was a Conta. Isn't that supposed to be a royal name?" She said the words "royal name" like it's no big deal, I began to wonder (again) how much she did really know about our world. "Yes," Christian confirmed, "but which Conta would he be? It's not like Conta is a small family." "So our mystery man is a Conta? How'd you know?" asked Rose cheerfully as Dimitri and herself appeared in sight. "May told me." said Neelia. Rose nodded and said, "Alright, Liss, I just called Abe and he said it's better for you to inform the queen personally. And, Neelia? I just gave your full name to my father, hope you don't mind, not that you can do anything about it anyway." "Nah, it's fine. What's that for? A background check?" Neelia said jokingly. Rose smirked, "Sure, why not?" Just as they were about to make more useless conversation, I cleared my throat and said, "We've got a problem: I don't have any way to contact the queen, any ideas?" Christian shook his head and Dimitri just frowned, Rose looked uneasy, _very_ uneasy. "Um, I still remember Adrian's number." she said slowly. I nodded my head with gratitude. "But, later. I'll call Abe first, okay?" Rose quickly added, and left the room without waiting for an answer.

[RPOV]

"Hey old man, got the information I need?" I asked without greeting as soon as he picked up the phone. "Sure, kiz. It seems like you're among the East mountains not far from the arena. There are a few of human towns nearby and I sent something to your town, just go to the post office and tell them your name. There are a few untraceable credit cards and some IDs. The human is safe to keep company though the way she knows about us remains mystery, for now." Not wanting to hear more about "the human", I asked why he can't just contact the court for us. "All in good time, little girl, and I won't have to explain if you could just contact them already." "Fine, old man anything else I should know about?" "The owner of the house you're staying at won't be too fond of you when he returns," he said, almost gleefully. "Stay safe, little girl." And with that his disconnected, I can almost see him smirking. Seeing Neelia at the door, she seemed quite hesitant to leave the warded house. I decided to go with her. When she asked me if I wanted to hit the supermarket, I immediately agreed, seriously, after a lifetime-worthy of madness, the post office can surly wait.

 **A/N: Long time no posting, I know, but please let me excuse myself claiming the pre and post graduation stuff left me little to no time to spend with my family-laptop. Yup, I just graduated, (If anyone's curious {or not}, in my country we go to six years of elementary, three years of middle school/junior high, then the three years of {senior} high required by the government.) and I'm recently enjoying the expanded summer vacation (well, not really, since we start school early. But who am I to complain?), hopefully I get more time to post more often (though I'm seriously doubting it, not that I'll let you know :D). Anyway, have a nice week.**

 **Trying to share the joy of graduating from middle school,**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.06.19**


	15. Chapter 15

[NPOV]

I can't believe I'm shopping groceries with _the_ Rose Hathaway. I must have made a face because she asked me what the face was for. Being embarrassed, I said, "It's just that after reading the series, you being the main character, became a figure that I look up to, yet here we are, shopping groceries." She looked uneasy but gave a forced smile, we then parted ways in the supermarket. I got a SIM card, which was soon followed by bottled water, high-calorie sweets, dried fruits, and things instant edible. Just things that I can tuck in my bag, along with my blades and supplies. Passing the medical section, I grabbed a bottle of rubbing alcohol and some gauze. Always trying to get myself metabolism, I don't mind getting some blood out of my system, it's the endrophin that I am not so sure about. In some ways I am slightly more than willing to give them blood - it means that I am "helping" the "people" that I have belief in. I just hope it's not a sick thought. Now that I'm (temporally) out of immediate life-threatening situations, I have more time to live constantly in fear. "You've got the most badass guardians and the ex-queen _and_ a defensive fire-magic using Moroi with you, there's no need to worry." I told myself, but still, "They held no responsibility to you, idiot! Providing food, water, and a tent does not make you part of them! They can leave you anywhere whenever they feel like it!" I frowned as the thought entered my mind. "Oh, young lady, I really hope that doesn't mean you haven't got enough cash!" shrieked the inpatient-looking cashier. "Eh, I've got enough, sorry." I smiled awkwardly. After paying, I waiting for Rose at the exist. "Hey, why was she fake fainting and staring at you earlier?" said Rose as she appeared in sight, with two large bags and a causal tone. "The cashier thought I haven't got enough money." I said as Rose' expression hardened. Realizing that she was sending the cashier a death-glare, I grabbed the only fresh and hot food and gave it to her. "What's this?" asked Rose. "It's just something I got at the bakery section." I answered. She took a bite and asked, "What for?" "Take it as a thank you." I said. She looked a little stunned and said, "For what?" "Everything and anything," I said truthfully, "it's the least I can do." She smiled, a main character worthy smile that can't be described by words and letters. "Come on, let's go to the post office," she said, "and maybe you can send home a postcard."

[RPOV]

I never she would send a postcard home, let alone a letter. A freaking, f*cking, hand written, air delivery letter. That goes _in_ a _postbox_. "Why on Earth," I asked, "don't you just give them a _call_?" Feeling confused, I pointed at her brand new and just-bought SIM card. "Ignoring the time difference," Neelia started sarcastically, "I not in the mood to talk to my family," she continue with a tone too solemn, "especially after what happened to my... previous companions." Then I got it. "They hasn't read the series, yeah?" I asked. She nodded then said, "I may have mentioned it once or twice, but never did they seem to be interested. Now giving it a second thought, maybe it's better this way, what you don't know or believe in won't affect you, with the exception of global warming of course." she finished with a small smile. That left me speechless, well, kind of. "Uh, I'll go to the counter." I said, more of a question than a statement. She nodded and said, "I'll take your bags and wait outside." I did as told and went to the counter. "My name is Rose Hathaway and I believe I have a package?" I decided to make it a question. "Yes you do. Wait for a second, sign over here, and here you go. I open the box to find the contents unsurprisingly surprising: a satellite phone (yes, I know what that is), a few credit cards, a stack of cash, and... a few fake passports. For Lissa, Christian, Dimitri, and I. I quickly put the things back to the box and got out of the post office. On the way back to the Weiners', I kept having a really bad feeling about something going wrong, very wrong at court. I pushed the thought aside when a running May came in sight. "Neelia!" the little girl squeaked, but waved to me in recognition. "My father, home!" she said, dragging Neelia and pulling me inside the house, where stood a man talking to Lissa. When he turned to Neelia and I, the tight smile on his face crumbles. "Mazur." he stated coldly. "Uh, I'll put the things in place." said Neelia, sensing the tension and disappeared in the hallway, taking May with her, nowhere to be seen. How I wished to take her place. "That should be me. ?" I asked, is he supposed to seem familiar to me? Then again, I _did_ resemble my father more than a little. "Conta," he corrected sharply, "Richard Conta, no title. Who is supposed to be DEAD since eight years ago, and never in my remaining years should I meet or even see another Moroi with the exception of my descendants. Just as Abe himself promised." Then it clicked, he must be one of Abe's clients. "You're a Mazur, aren't you? I thought we had a deal including never to be found." he accused. "Actually, I go by the name Hathaway. Guardian Rose Hathaway, who had met that old man you said no more than two years ago. Funny if we had met earlier you may be one of a few to see the resemblance. And for your information, e came here accidentally, invited by your family, your daughter to be exact. We will leave if not welcomed." I said, walking straight to the kitchen to get Dimitri, feeling very happy that I've at least taken a shower.

[NPOV]

As I took May and the "groceries" in the suite, Christian came in sight."I take that dinner is over?" he asked. "Hasn't even started yet." I replied, then started packing. "Wow, that bad?" he smiled mischievously. I shook my head and replied, "Just a feeling." "Well, good that I've dried the laundry." he said, pointing to a pile of clothes on the bed. "You sure make a good housewife." I joked and hopped on the bed, ignoring his smirk and start folding the clothes. It felt so good to something this familiar. May smiled sadly at me, tugging lighting at my hair. "You want to keep doing my hair?" May nodded and hopped on the bed right behind me. She was leaving when she finished as she opened the door to reveal a Dimitri with a armful of food and a Rose with a similar situation. "Dinner." Dimitri said simply. "Where's Lissa?" asked Christian. "Compulsion." Rose said simply. We than dug in without another word.

 **A/N: A very late update with no excuses other than I'm more than a little lazy.**

 **Enjoy,**

 **Demonife**

 **2017.07.25**


	16. Chapter 16

[LPOV]

Here I am, burning myself by using compulsion.

"You invited us to dinner." I said. "Yes, I invited you to dinner." Emily agreed. "Both of you won't even give it a second thought about us coming or leaving." I continued. "Yeah, there is nothing to think about." They chanted in perfect sync. "No names are required during our pleasant encounter and you don't know any of us." I said. "Sure, why would we?" assured Richard. "What do you do for blood?" I asked as the thought suddenly occurred. "The local butcher paid me to get rid of the blood released. It's nasty but still does the job done." he replied. "Okay," I started, "Now, the two of you will finish dinner. Forget everything today related to us, call it an early night and retire. Do I make myself clear?" "Crystal." They said, again in the perfect sync. We, or rather, I, finish the rest of dinner in silence.

[RPOV]

We ate. It felt so great to be fed right. The food we brought in was barely enough for ten, but since there is only four of us, three of us having the diet of "pure food", the amount is just right. After clearing the plates, we started packing, well, they started packing and I handed out the groceries. Sunscreen, sun glasses, fresh clothes, undergarments, backpacks, or in Lissa's case, a purse. There wasn't much that we brought in the arena, even less that "we" brought out, so it's just great to stock up a little, especially toiletries. Liss then came in with a tired expression as I looked out the window to see a darkening sky. "We'll leave in five minutes _after_ the sun rises, as much as I dislike the idea, we have to stay the night, in the wards." Liss said, I nodded. "Rose, now would be a good time to make the call." she then added. _There will never be a good time to call,_ I thought and sighed, looking at Neelia meaningfully. "I'll be at May's, be back in fifteen?" Neelia said immediately. "Make it twenty." I said, though it's more of a question. She nodded knowingly (which still send me creeps), left a "you can use my phone if you don't want him to recognize the number", and disappeared at the door. I weighed my options carefully for half a minute then picked up Neelia's cell and dialed the number I once knew like the back of my hand. The first two calls went straight to voicemail. "He" picked up at the third call, on the last ring before it automatically switched to voicemail. I put it on speaker. "Who is it?" came a girl's voice, oddly familiar to me. The three of them stared at me in disbelief. "Apologies," I said quickly, "but didn't this number belonged to someone else?" There is no way I would forget his number or dial the wrong one. "What do you want from me, little Dhampir?" slurred Adrian Ivashkov from the background. The three of them visibly relaxed then tensed again, taking in the fact that he is drunk and a girl is answering his phone. I sighed and answered, but not without a comeback. "Can't we just appreciate the fact that we aren't dead for a second, please? And it's not for me, it's Lissa!" "Hey, cousin! You're alive!" drunk Adrian exclaimed happily. Dimitri wrinkled his nose in distaste. Then Adrian's words seemed to sank in himself. "You guys have to get here! The Moroi world is in revolution! It's not safe out there, you have to come and stay with us!" he started to ramble, I could almost see him beating himself to sober. "There are...rebels," he continued, "Court isn't safe, at all. I'm with jailbait and my great aunt. Mia and Eddie are with us, too. And some of the royals. You have to get to us. We're at..." BAM! A loud noise told us that an elephant decided to jump, or maybe it's Adrian passing out. "Adrian!" Lissa and the girl on the phone exclaimed, meaning the latter happened. "Rose, is that you on the other end?" the girl asked, taking over the phone. "Sydney?!" I exclaimed. There is just a lot of exclamations going on. She sighed, "Yes, this is Sydney. I would explain the situation, but it's really not my place. Is there you would like me to get? Moroi or guardians?" "I remember Adrian say Jill and Eddie? And Mia if she's there? You know who I am talking about?" I asked, uncertain of the situation. "Sure, but I need five minutes or so to get them all." Sydney said, then added after a second, "And Rose?" "Yeas?" I answered. "Don't be so harsh on him, he quitted for quite a while, and only started when he thought all of you were dead." with that, she disconnected. "Who is she?" asked Lissa. "An alchemist I first met in Russia..." I then launched into the story of our "cooperation", it took about five minutes, and I knew that because as I was saying they knew the rest, the phone rang. "Rose!" came Mia's squeak and Eddie's concerned voice. "And Lissa, Christian, and Dimitri." I helpfully added. "Hello sister. Hi Rose, Christian, and Guardian Belikov." came Jill's timid voice. "So, the four of you are still alive?" asked Eddie. I rolled my eyes. "Yes, now tell us what the hell is going on!" "Uh, it's kind of hard to explain." he said. "Maybe start from sending us to the damn arena?" provided Christian helpfully. "So," came Jill's voice, "after you were sent to the arena, the royals went through a brutal argument about the age law," "The age law again?" I interrupted as I felt anger spike through, I held my tongue, hardly. "then three days later, the court went through lock down, turns out that some of the royals wanted to start a new government, then the Keepers somehow got involved. Just as the Queen was about to summon you back from the arena for safety, they found the arena broken by Moroi magic, and traces that Strigoi had invaded, guardians searched through the arena but got in a fight with the remaining Strigoi. That's why we all thought you were dead. you have to come back to us, now that Moroi are at war with Moroi, we don't know who to trust.

 **No A/N, Demonife**

 **2017.07.26**


End file.
